Tip #1 for Avoiding a Wrongful Termination Claim

Document before termination. If possible, document infractions (that may lead to termination) before you terminate the employee. For example, write down in memo form instances of employee misconduct or poor performance, then meet with your employee to discuss the matter. Present the memo and ask your employee to sign same to acknowledge receipt, keeping a signed copy to place in the employee’s personnel file. In the memo, advise the employee that any further infraction could lead to discipline, which could include termination. Now you have “documented” the event.

By this method of documenting the infraction you have a “track record” of previous misbehavior should you need to terminate the employee later for a similar reason. Document in writing instances of lateness, poor performance, customer complaints, not following policy, and keep in the employee file.

Documentation helps an employer by providing justification for a subsequent termination should an employee later falsely assert his/her termination is instead based on some unrelated and purportedly illegal basis.

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